High cost of shooting, what are you doing?

[teele1]

fgw_in_fl Manatee Gun Club is a 1000 range east of Bradenton, Fl http://www.manateegunclub.com/
great place to shoot and great folks there

jim

[lal357]

We have 1000y F-Class at Pascagoula, MS (Moss Point actually) but I'm usually at work on those days.
got my wife talked into dropping me off there when she goes to see her sister in gauiter, ms. so if you see a big guy walking to your gates with a rifle case,spotting scope,mat and ammo i'm not homeless just want to shoot bad. lol
as for bama the auburn/bama game should be a good one

[JCalhoun]

lal,

Drop this member a line, SWGC JBMIII , and ask about shooting with us. He's the F-Class match director.

[bflee]

I guess I am lucky for an East coast shooter. I bought 31 acres 7 years ago and I have a 100 and 200 yard range about sixty feet from my back door. I also have a cousin three miles from my house who farms if I get the itch to shoot up to 550. That's the limit right now but I am sure some of the farmers around I grew up with would not have a problem with me shooting in some fields longer than that. I took it for granted until I realized some of the guys who come and shoot with me live on 1/2 acre lots or in town and cannot practice much. I am in Eastern NC and I am thankful I do have "free range".

[fgw_in_fla]

fgw_in_fl Manatee Gun Club is a 1000 range east of Bradenton, Fl http://www.manateegunclub.com/
great place to shoot and great folks there

jim

Belated thanks for the heads up. As of late, I use the Sebastian / Indian River Co. range for scope set up, rifle set up or if I just need a day of hanging out with other guys & shooting or talking guns. Sometimes we all stand in a half circle & solve world issues, too. For real applications and longer range shooting we've been going to our 400 acre swamp in Osceola Co. The power lines along the west prop line is where I made our 600yd shooting area. I'd like to cut in a longer section but I need to verify the prop line location first. I'm not 100% sure where ours ends & theirs begins.
Nice & quiet (until the shooting starts). No cell signal. Hogs running rampant.
It helps rejuvenate to soul.

[Rupe]

I reload and I have a 100, 200, and a 300 yard ranges just outside my front door and I.can aso shoot 1000 yards out my front door.as well.
But it is getting harder to shoot alot because the.gun.shops don't have.anything on their shelves. I was very lucky to snag 2 pounds of powder the other day, 1 of 4064 and 1 of 8208xbr. It was all they had. . I can't believe that the manufactures haven't been able to.catch up. It's been over a year esnse.the.great hoard of 2012/2013. Are people still hoarding? Ijust.can't figure out why we still can't buy anything off the shelf anymore??? And look at what a.brick of .22 LR's costs. Everyone is trying to make a fortune of of this. The prices are getting way high on everything when you can find it. Seems the gun stores are screwing the customers ( US ) over. I just don't get it. They will sale more reloading supplies if they put the prices back down to with in reason. $34.00 is what I paid for each pound of powder I bought the other day. Is it just me that thinks, things have gottin' out pf control? Please let me know if I'm wrong and that it's OK that $10.00 for a box of 50 remington Thunderbolts is right?
Sorry for the rant, but I am really getting sick of all this. We reload to save money but at the rate things are going maybe spending $30. for a box of .308 win. core lokes is cheaper then reloading. I haven't sat down and figured it out on paper. I just know I can't buy enough supplies to load very mean rounds and I have to drive 80 miles to my local gun shop to see what is on the shelf.
Oops ranting again. Sorry again,
Have a good day,
Rupe

[ShawneeB]

No it's not OK to pay $10 for a box of Thunderbolts. Boycott the people gouging other people and let them all sit on it, prices will come back down. Availability will rise in stores cause the gougers aren't camped at Wally world to clean out the 2X weekly delivery clerks let their buddies know about. Prices on Gunbroker are out of sight, ammo and guns. Used guns over MSRP taunting "with scope" that's not worth the screws or aluminum mounts it's stuck on with.

Just don't pay it. Shoot a muzzleloader, scrounge lead. 25# lots of Black Powder available many places and less than the fake stuff which is also available most anywhere. Shoot a flintlock and don't worry about caps although percussion caps and primers are coming back on shelves, some smokeless powders too.

Shoot a bow, a slingshot. Make an atlatl and darts, toss darts. Throw knives, hawks. It's all fun, can be friendly competition and saves some of your ammo. Make some of your stuff. I make bows, blowguns, atlatls, knives, slings, slingshots, tater cannae. That take more of your time, is fun too.

If you reload cast some boolits with gas checks and reduce your load.

Last, have faith it will get better and don't give up. Some things are made in big runs not constantly. They will come back:)

I'm a dealer and I refuse to gouge. I have some 22 stock I bought before the hoard and make 10%. I don't flash it, advertise it or sell it on GB. Locals know me and they know where to get it. If they buy a 22 at Wallys because they asked me and my price is $10 more ( I can't get wallys wholesale prices),,, then come back asking to buy 22 ammo from me?? Guess what.

[Rupe]

I do finish work on longbows and I hunt deer with one as well. I was lucky and got a lot of bullets, primers as well as a lot of reloading stuff at an estate auction 1 1/2 years ago so the o.ly thing I am short on is anything .270 win. and powder. I refuse to buy .22lr for such a price. I just am tired of this stuff. Glad to hear you are not scalping customers and I agree not selling to those that go to Wally's then want you to do them a favor. Kick them to the curb!
I thought we would be back to normal by now, but in my area it just isn't.happening. I like going to my local gunshop which the closest one is 80 miles away. I want them to get the money but they aren't getting products in and are having to do the samething your doing and only putting outso much a day so others will have a.chance at getting something too. Some places have gone to limiting.what tou can buy. That is great in my book! Until this is over stop letting the few rich get all the goods!
Any way I won't give up, I like our sport to much to do that, but no one needs 20,000 rounds of ammo for each gun they have.
Thank you for the encouragement!
Rupe

[ShawneeB]

Rupe. You're welcome and encouragement goes both ways, thanks:p On keeping the faith I did deal with one person on GB refused to gouge on powder and picked up a few pounds various shotgun and pistol powder (avg $20#) last year when it was even worse. He was pleased when I said "one of each, leave some for someone else".

I'm seeing the powder get a bit better, primers too. Limits to 1 or 2# sometimes on rifle powder online but least it's not "out of stock, no backorders". 22lr, darn near impossible local or wholesalers, 22 wmr is just as bad and none around here. May find a box of 06 or 223 but anything else, forget it. I have had 22 ammo on backorder at Zanders for a year and that was the one or 2 brands they said are replenishing the fastest (aguila was one)

Nah, never been one to gouge, even since a kid. Just not right. I got a bug about all the wally shoppers, yea OK save a buck economys hard. But then the same smart shoppers shouldn't complain all the small gunshops have disappeared, can't find a local gunsmith on and on. Get a good cup of coffee and sensible firearms related conversation at wallys counter?

Yea they were rationing 22 at one gunshop. I had to laugh, boxes of 50 split up into multiple little ziplocs, 2 per customer!

[Rupe]

I miss the local gunshops and gunsmiths. There all most all gone anymore. Trying to find the old guys that ran small shops out of their houses and were good funsmiths to boot is ery rare. I live outside a small community and there isn't anyone around.that I know of that is a true smith. The closest smith I know of is 2 hours away. The Wally type stores and the.batf have run them out of business. They just can't make enough to support them selves trying to compete with gun sales from.a.chain.store. Heck there's no way a.small shop.can.sell guns as.cheap.as.a.Wally's, like you said you can't get the discounts due to volume wholesale buys like.the Wallys.can get. If the.wholesalers would.givee.the little guys.the same price they could keep the doors open and then I would.have a place to go and drink coffee and.talk.guns het GOOD advise etc. it just isn't the same anymore. That "Ol' might dollar" is to important to the manufactor and the wholesalers. But.as.thwy say.the world is a changing! Not much we can do about it but try to keep the little guys open by spending just a little more and support them. You can get it.back in good deals and free.coffee and free advise and sometimes.even a little free labor. I am afraid I don't trust rhe guy behind the counter at wallys . No doubt I would end up with a broken gun or a trip to.the.ER room.
Sort of got of track, but I guess it's all related short supply, the.big buyers get the first filled orders and.the.little guy gets kust enough to keep them appeased. Maybe? It's just a bummer that we can't all work together. The customers, the small and large stores, wholesellers and of courae.the manufacters when panic hits. Just everyone stop and take a breath and see what we can all do to help our sport and keep everyone going and happy. Oops! Just slipped into a day dream! LOL
I just hope that the selves will be full again soon. I'm going to need more then just powder here pretty quick. And I am trying to not have to pay hazmat fees and to keep my cash in my own community. I don't care for buy on line all that much, NO FREE COFFEE online! LOL
Rupe
.

[ShawneeB]

Yup, wallys world can sell Axis on sales, Xmas for a good bit less than I could ever buy one. Normally a package axis would cost someone $6 more from me. But when they are another 20% off? I can't blame people for buying there! Pubs like shotgun news didn't help storefront gunshops much either. I have wholesalers won't disclose prices to the public but SGN does. So if someone wants to order a gun from a rag or internet store what does a dealer get? A transfer fee of $25. Oh yea, and a mess of paperwork with many different local and federal agencies, calls, visit, wait for UPS, visits from ATF. Do I make anything? Heck no, I lose money! Buttt.

Do I care? Yes I care!! I love arming the public, talking with them, see and make them happy, order them things like from Numrich/GPC or Sarco they could order themselves and charge no extra cause they like being taken care of with no worry of ordering the wrong part. Can I make money? Occasionally I spot a particular rifle at a gun show, buy it and make some bucks. Gunsmithing is labor and parts, I got plenty of time to work on guns. Used to be an 07mfg and class 2 sot. Before ATF tightened up AGAIN on imports I made decent bucks making AK and FnFals, building AR, 1911's. Decent bucks to be made on cans but talk about a process and time involved!

Th gunshops will be missed. Yes the coffee, goodies someone brought wife baked or a dozen donuts, all the talk, laughter, bull, meet new people, network and find events. You'll find a shooting event sign, training class, hunt in a gunshop, not downtown in the antis windows. Many times I toss in a box of ammo. There's usually the $5-10 table with old stock, holsters, whatnot. Yea they will be missed. Wonder if some of the younger people even experienced the old gunstores, the ones with 100 handguns, 3 walls of rifles mostly used and always one you seem to need that day :)

That hazmat's tough. Got to get primers, powder of all kinds to make a good order and make it worth it! I keep checking with distribs, some I call daily for 22 ammo. They told me to. Once in a while I luck out and "ya'll" luck out. Last was a 10 case 350 boxes federal, made some locals happy.

[tufrthnails]

Belated thanks for the heads up. As of late, I use the Sebastian / Indian River Co. range for scope set up, rifle set up or if I just need a day of hanging out with other guys & shooting or talking guns. Sometimes we all stand in a half circle & solve world issues, too. For real applications and longer range shooting we've been going to our 400 acre swamp in Osceola Co. The power lines along the west prop line is where I made our 600yd shooting area. I'd like to cut in a longer section but I need to verify the prop line location first. I'm not 100% sure where ours ends & theirs begins.
Nice & quiet (until the shooting starts). No cell signal. Hogs running rampant.
It helps rejuvenate to soul.

Sounds like fun to me. If you are anywhere near Lakeland I would be willing help reduce that hog population. Got a cousin that will find out he is the new owner of a savage this christmas that loves to hunt with me as well. Pretty hard to find "ANY" private land to hunt on here in Florida.

[fgw_in_fla]

Sounds like fun to me. If you are anywhere near Lakeland I would be willing help reduce that hog population. Got a cousin that will find out he is the new owner of a savage this christmas that loves to hunt with me as well. Pretty hard to find "ANY" private land to hunt on here in Florida.

Can't find any private land in Florida to hunt? Stop looking in Tampa, Orlando, Miami....

We're in the area called Wolf Creek. It was an old stage coach stop over between Orlando & Melbourne until the old hotel burned down in the early 1900's. My wife's family are some of the original merchant / settlers of Melbourne. Her grandpappy picked up a few hundred acres back in the early 60's in Osceola Co. - Just north of Deseret Ranch.
So you see, there are substantial benefits to marrying a Florida redneck.
It took 2 years to teach her how to walk in shoes, but good folks.

Next, we're working on teaching her how to spit tobacco juice out the truck window without hitting the mirror.

[Rupe]

Yup, wallys world can sell Axis on sales, Xmas for a good bit less than I could ever buy one. Normally a package axis would cost someone $6 more from me. But when they are another 20% off? I can't blame people for buying there! Pubs like shotgun news didn't help storefront gunshops much either. I have wholesalers won't disclose prices to the public but SGN does. So if someone wants to order a gun from a rag or internet store what does a dealer get? A transfer fee of $25. Oh yea, and a mess of paperwork with many different local and federal agencies, calls, visit, wait for UPS, visits from ATF. Do I make anything? Heck no, I lose money! Buttt.

Do I care? Yes I care!! I love arming the public, talking with them, see and make them happy, order them things like from Numrich/GPC or Sarco they could order themselves and charge no extra cause they like being taken care of with no worry of ordering the wrong part. Can I make money? Occasionally I spot a particular rifle at a gun show, buy it and make some bucks. Gunsmithing is labor and parts, I got plenty of time to work on guns. Used to be an 07mfg and class 2 sot. Before ATF tightened up AGAIN on imports I made decent bucks making AK and FnFals, building AR, 1911's. Decent bucks to be made on cans but talk about a process and time involved!

Th gunshops will be missed. Yes the coffee, goodies someone brought wife baked or a dozen donuts, all the talk, laughter, bull, meet new people, network and find events. You'll find a shooting event sign, training class, hunt in a gunshop, not downtown in the antis windows. Many times I toss in a box of ammo. There's usually the $5-10 table with old stock, holsters, whatnot. Yea they will be missed. Wonder if some of the younger people even experienced the old gunstores, the ones with 100 handguns, 3 walls of rifles mostly used and always one you seem to need that day :)

That hazmat's tough. Got to get primers, powder of all kinds to make a good order and make it worth it! I keep checking with distribs, some I call daily for 22 ammo. They told me to. Once in a while I luck out and "ya'll" luck out. Last was a 10 case 350 boxes federal, made some locals happy.

Oh Hum Bug, It would sure be nice to get back to those days! Just isn't going to happen.
I live in the perfect place for a good ol' gun shop, but with only a 1000 people living in the area it would be pretty hard to make enough to pay for it's self. I have thought about running one out of the house, (once it's finished being built that is), but I just don't think it would be worth the paperwork for the state and feds. atf etc. It would sure be nice if one of the business in town would rent out a large.corner of theor store for a gunshop. I bet that would be a real pain in the neck.
So I'm thinking you should move your shop here! Hahaha
Just a thought. I don't know maybe a gun shop would work here. Like I said the closed one is 80 miles away and he also sales booze and his prices are way high. He's also trying to sale .22lr for $100.oo a brick of 500.
With all the ranches and small towns around who knows, maybe it would be worth it. ???
Yep, dreamin' is fun! lol
I hope you are able to continue to keep your doors open and stay busy.
Your community needs you!

Rupe

[ShawneeB]

Rupe, lived in WA 20 years, rainy side. I do like Oregon better than WA but love KY!

It's a small town here too, 1700people. One has a small store front on his land, a shack with a ship container for his safe, another out his home. Couple more in 20 mi radius all home based. I have to drive 60mi one way just to get to a town with a couple shops, pawn etc. I would do much better with a small storefront and have talked to the county about doing it. Not a problem. Not a big one, 16 x 20 would work and enough room for a coffee pot too. I'd get more business I'm sure. Thank you, I'm trying, always here for people. They know too, nights and Sundays are popular and I don't care.

$100 a brick! I sold a few bricks $35 a brick recently, sold out of those,, Eley with the rabbit on them. Sold some 350 pks $28 I saw wallys old 550 packs on GB for $90 minus shipping. :mad:

If you really want to do a shop, go for it. It's not so bad that it doesn't over ride the joy or arming the public, getting someone their first fun in which case I waive the transfer if they order. No transfer fee on instock guns of course. Small towns like small business and here it's pretty simple. No employees, small B&O once a year, I can do my own taxes and ATF is not as bad as it sounds it can be. I've always had pleasant agents, just have every single I dotted and T crossed, and don't agitate them or play smart and no probs ever. Even had 2 ladie ATF agents once and we played with switchblades for 3 hrs and drank coffee!

[Rupe]

Shawnee, I lived up in Washington for 13 years, Whidbey Is. and then Bellingham. Where did you live?
O finally made it to the dry side of Oregon. Took me 40 years to get back over on this side. Now I am.staying and they will have to drag me kicking and screaming to get me over the mountains again. I love it here. We live 20 out of Christmas Valley. Nearest neighbor is about 1.5 miles away.
That would be the big problem of running a shop out of my home. It takes a 4x4 to get to our place on the winter. Until.the house is done we are living in a 10'x20' cabin no plumbing, no electricity, just a little solar panel to charge a couple of 6v batteries for lights. We use our phones to get on line. So running a.gun shop wouldn't work to well. The house won't be done for another year, then it's on to a 30x40 shop. I'm retired and I don't know if I want to tie myself down with a gun shop. I think about it and it wouldn't be.to bad and it could be fun, but would I really want that? I don't know, I'll keep thinking about it. My wife would have to have a say in it and she would probably be fine with it except for being tied down to where we can't jump into the Jeep and take off anytime we want. This retired stuff is pretty cool after working my whole life. Not having to live by the clock is great!
Rupe

[ShawneeB]

I lived Belfair, Tahuya, some in Bummerton and Port Orchard. PSNS 6 years. Licensed General Contractor. Also did oil burners all over the place. Braindamage island alot. Been on Widbey plenty times. Base paintball team used to visit us in Sequim, "Slug Deth" team. They invited our team to play on their field on Widbey, kicked their butts 11 for 11! Had no clue as to our warped maniac tactics:cool: Blitz charged em a couple times, they stood there mouths open, didn't even fire back and we painted their faces good.

Heck, your living right. Forget the business hassles and enjoy! There's an old FFL buddy had a gun shop in Brem moved dry side, half way in the state. I forget where. Glen but forgot his last name. Could be a neighbor!

[Rupe]

Yes I do feel blessed living out here. Now you know why I am standing on that fence. Why ruin a perfectly good adventure to start a shop? And it is an adventure almost every day out here. I am pretty sure I won't do it but you never lnow when that wild hair will spring out and say do it. hajaja

[Rupe]

Oops, Shawnee I think we hi jacked this thread. PM me anytime your in the mood to chat.
Rupe

[ShawneeB]

Rupe, Ah heck, it's off topic forum. We supposed to go off topic right:p Yep, PM is good!